


Manjushage

by AirashiSakura



Series: Sarada's First Gift [1]
Category: Boruto: Naruto Next Generations, Naruto
Genre: Baby Sarada, Flowers, Friendship, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Jealousy, Karin centric, Karin loves Sarada, Not really language of flower, Realization, SakuKarin, The mystery behind Team Taka group pic, Unrequited Love, but it's kinda revolve around flowers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-21
Updated: 2021-01-21
Packaged: 2021-03-13 04:02:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,276
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28897095
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AirashiSakura/pseuds/AirashiSakura
Summary: Just my thoughts on how Karin would have felt about Sasuke's and Sakura's relationship.
Relationships: Haruno Sakura/Karin
Series: Sarada's First Gift [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2119305
Comments: 2
Kudos: 6





	Manjushage

**Author's Note:**

  * For [cherryberry12](https://archiveofourown.org/users/cherryberry12/gifts).



> Hello Everyone!
> 
> First, a big thanks to fanofthisfiction for organizing Show Me the Love "Flowers" Challenge 2021. I am really happy to participate and finally write a story. Please visit her profile on FFN to know more about this challenge as well as to read and review stories of other authors who took part. Remember, reviews left by our lovely readers are a valuable entity for authors, and they really not only motivate us to write but also help us through bad days.
> 
> Second, this is my first attempt to write a story on a prompt. So I was kinda excited to pen down something.
> 
> Lastly, this fic is special for me because my beta, CherryBerry12, is a BIG fan of Karin. It was tough for me to write this, but I wanted to gift her this story. Do give her profile a visit to read some awesome Karin fics!
> 
> A/N: Manjushage Means Red spider lilies in Japanese.

Karin had been on high alert from the moment she had hidden herself up in a branch of a tree. The outskirts of Konoha seemed to be a relatively unguarded place, with no tight security around — good for her and also good for the people she was going to meet. 

The summer heat and humidity had waned, and the evenings had turned cooler now. The sun would gradually set on the horizon, and the evening breeze was blowing gently. Shorter days and cool sunlight indicated that autumn was already there. She had always disliked the chill of the fall, and waiting patiently wasn’t her nature. She adjusted her glasses and checked for any nearby chakras. She picked up two, and neither were the one that she was waiting for.

_ Damn it! Hurry up,  _ she cursed as she concealed her chakra.

As two Konoha shinobis passed through, the red-headed woman sighed in relief. Although Karin was confident that she could get out if any trouble showed up, she didn’t want to get into undesirable situations today. After all, she was going to meet someone she had been expecting to meet for weeks. 

A blush lit up her face that rivalled the vivid red hues of autumn around her. She looked towards Konoha, beautifully lit against the setting sun. 

_ Sasuke’s home, _ she thought.

In addition to the village, she noticed a striking transformation in the trees around her. A plethora of red, orange, and yellow leaves were clinging to the branches, waiting to fly with the wind. A gust of wind disheveling her red hair, blew some leaves, but some of them didn’t fly high and settled on the foot of the tree. Following those leaves, her eyes fell on the several varieties of flowers that bloomed in patches around the trees. She noticed a few chrysanthemums, spider lilies, and cosmos flowers displaying their hues proudly. 

Karin realised she had spent so long in Orochimaru's murky hideouts that she had forgotten beautiful things like that existed. 

The red spider lilies among them caught her attention most. The flowers mysteriously bloomed right around the autumnal equinox and were associated with the coming darkness of winter. She wasn't the poetic type, but she found herself relating to the flower.

Karin’s life had always been harsh like winters. The coldness of people around her had snatched the innocence from her glinting ruby-coloured eyes, but she had always triumphed over it. 

Her earliest memories were of being abused for her incredible healing abilities by Kusagakure shinobis. When that had become unbearable, Orochimaru had offered her protection, and in exchange she had become one of his experiments. More or less, she had ended up doing what she hated most — letting people bite and suck chakra out of her. 

Whenever life changed for her, she always adjusted and survived, holding her spirits high. Maybe she couldn’t have realized how beautiful and strong the color red could be if she hadn’t observed different shades of red around her. Spring and pink looked gorgeous, she knew, but she embraced the fact that red and autumn were vibrant in their own way.

A small shrub with white flowers also caught her attention. She had always been attracted to the strong fragrances, and she was sure it was gardenia.

Karin jumped down from the tree, carefully looking out for any chakra. She plucked a flower and inhaled its sweet scent. Childhood memories flooded her along with the aroma. When days were simple and kind, her mother used to clip gardenia buds to her hair. Gardenias were sensitive to cold temperatures; she could remember her mother saying that. She looked at the last gardenia of the season in her hand, knowing the temperature would soon drop down further. 

She picked up a few more chakras and with swiftest movement she leapt back into a tree, masking her own signature again. The dusk gave her advantage to cover herself up. 

Karin counted  _ four, five, no seven people. _

Her sensory skills were always accurate, and she was right. A group of genins, carefree after their small missions, were heading towards their home. Her eyes followed them to Konoha.

_ Sasuke’s home, _ she thought again.

Absentmindedly, her hands searched for the envelope in her pocket. She took out the photo of Team Taka she’d brought with her and admired Sasuke. He had grown more handsome when she had a chance to meet him some years back — when he wasn’t married to Sakura. She had seen Sasuke change after the war, but Sasuke, after Sakura came into his life, had stunned her. She wished that Sasuke had been a little gentle to her, like he was to Sakura.

But that didn’t matter now — Sasuke was married to Sakura. Sakura did what she couldn’t — she made Sasuke hers.

The image of Sakura clutching Sasuke’s cloak, writhing from labor pain, had been engraved in her mind. Karin hated every bit of it, she swore. She hated every inch of the pink-haired woman who stood beside Sasuke. The thought itself sent a surge of jealousy through her veins. 

She wondered, why did she want to meet her today? Why did the thought even cross her mind? 

Meeting Sakura wasn’t something she would enjoy, but it gave her a chance to meet Sasuke’s daughter.

She put the photo back inside the envelope, neatly creasing its sides to make it more presentable. 

She wasn't sure if they would come. She had sent a letter to Sakura, telling her the place and time to meet, but she asked her not to reply. Yamato was always on guard outside the hideout, and it would be troublesome if he noticed a messenger hawk from Konoha. She couldn’t let anyone know about what she was doing, especially the annoying sneaky Suigetsu.

She picked up two chakras and sighed in relief. Adjusting her glasses, she could see the pink-haired woman coming towards her, cradling a child in her arms.

_ Finally! _ She jumped from the tree.

“Sorry for being late,” Sakura apologized. 

Karin saw Sarada was quietly sleeping in Sakura’s arms. She didn’t have to sense Sarada’s chakra to tell she wasn’t well. She could understand the reason for their delay and felt guilty that she’d suspected that Sakura wouldn't come to meet her.

After taking a few breaths, Sakura said, caressing Sarada’s black hair out of her eyes, “Lately, she had been fussy, and she didn’t want to wake up.” 

Karin noticed Sakura’s eyes — tired and worried. She let Sakura continue, “After Sasuke left for a mission, she hasn’t been doing well.” 

“Sarada-chan will be okay when Sasuke returns,” Karin said in a high pitch, trying to console Sakura.

However, Sakura’s green eyes turned into a deeper shade of grim. 

_ What is it? Why is she insecure about Sasuke leaving?  _

She felt Sakura’s chakra, calm and radiant, like when they had met before. Her chakra was not fluctuating, which told her she wasn’t hiding any negative emotions, but felt a bit heavier by sadness. 

“Karin-san?” Sakura’s voice pulled her out of her thinking.

Karin adjusted her glass, not knowing how to address the reason she wanted to meet.

“I-It’s just-” Karin stammered, finding words that wouldn't sound ridiculous. “I just wanted to see Sarada-chan,” she said, looking towards Sarada and trailed off, “and see how you guys are doing.”

“Oh! I see.” Sakura smiled brightly.

Karin felt awkward — too emotional. Who was she kidding? Her gaze again fell on the flower in her hand. The gardenia, unlike red spider lilies, bloomed throughout summer and would wilt soon. The fragrance that the summer breeze carried would eventually evaporate — much like her love for Sasuke. 

She was there to find closure — letting go of her love for Sasuke — and to share something with Sakura that she had kept for so long. Perhaps that’s why she decided to see Sakura. Perhaps she should tell her why she wanted to meet and then leave. It was already late, and it was getting dark.

“You like gardenias?” Sakura craned her head to get a look at the flower Karin was holding.

“Uh, yes.” Karin blushed. 

Sarada wiggled in Sakura’s arm, blinked her eyes and looked towards Karin, brows drawn together. She then heard Sakura cooing her name to her baby daughter — introducing her to Sarada. 

_ Of course she won’t remember me. She was so tiny back then, _ Karin thought. 

She was awestruck to see how much Sarada had grown. Her little head now had dense black hair.  _ Just like Sasuke, _ she thought. 

Her eyes were shiny and black.  _ Just like Sasuke,  _ she thought again. 

Sarada's thin lips curled upwards a little and then she yawned, exposing her milk teeth. 

_ That smile. _ Her heart skipped a beat. 

_ That smile, just like Sasuke.  _

For years, she had wanted to see Sasuke’s smile — the one she had seen during the chunin exams. And here, in the most unexpected way, her wish had finally been fulfilled. Coming to meet Sakura had been worth all of the trouble.

“I really wanted to ask you if we could meet some other day. I feel so bad. You came to meet her, and she slept again.” Sakura pouted. 

“No, it’s okay.” 

Sakura probably would never know what she had received.

“Tell Sarada-chan I brought a gift for her.” Karin said, tucking the gardenia flower on her silky black hair and took out the envelope.

“What is it?” Sakura asked, perplexed. 

“A photo of Team Taka,” Karin replied with remorse in her voice. She knew the photo wouldn’t serve a pleasant memory for Sakura. She remembered everything clearly from the day she first met this pink haired woman, when she had saved Karin from dying. Maybe it wasn't a good idea to share the picture, she worried.

“Thank you, Karin-san,” Sakura said, her green eyes brimming with tears.

_ Eh? What? She thanked me, didn’t she? Why is she crying then? _ Karin panicked.

“Oi, you okay?”

“Yes.” Sakura took the envelope from Karin with a smile. 

* * *

  
  


Suigetsu had been excessively clingy after Karin returned to Orochimaru’s dark hideout, but the warmth of the people she met was far more valuable than Suigetsu’s jabbering. With her exceptional chakra sensing skills, she was sure that there was nobody near when she snuck inside, but the sneaky bastard had gone to her room and found she wasn’t there.

“Where did you go?” 

Although Suigetsu was getting on her nerves, Karin didn’t respond and walked through the dim-lighted hallways. She wasn’t going to let him know where she went or whom she went to meet with. 

“The look in your face speaks volumes,” Suigetsu interrupted again, blocking her way.

Karin fixed her glasses in place, gave him a deadly glare and cursing under her breath. She wasn’t in the mood to bicker with him.

“Did you go to meet Sasuke?” Suigetsu said with a sly grin.

“Shut up!” Karin swung her wrist to punch Suigetsu, but he dodged her hit.

Suigetsu again blocked her way, grinning, and Karin shouted, “Get out of my way, you bastard.”

“It’s just unusual for you to leave the hideout, so I thought you must be out on some important business,” he spoke the last three words in a teasing way.

Karin seethed. Suigetusu’s teasing made her want to strangle him. 

“Besides, the group photo you always carry around was missing from your room,” Suigetsu said again in a cunning manner.

“You bastard!” She swung her fist at his face again, and she screamed, “How dare you go through my drawer?” 

Suigetsu transformed into a pool of water, moving every time Karin tried to stomp on him. 

“See ya!” he finally snickered and moved in another direction.

“Damn you! Suigetsu come here!” She wasn’t done yet; she still hadn’t smacked his irritating face. 

Infuriated by Suigetsu, Karin kicked the door to her room closed. She rushed to the drawer to check if her other personal things were okay. 

While rummaging through her collections of perfumes and other stuff, she found the umbilical cord that she had preserved. A sad smile fell on her face as she realised that she could finally accept that Sakura had given Sasuke a family. Maybe she couldn’t ever have given one to Sasuke; she had lost her own as a small child. All she remembered was her mother.

_ ***** _

_ “Ne, Kaa-san, why do you help them when they treat you so badly?” _

_ “Because I possess something which others don’t have, and I believe in sharing it with them. And don’t say like that. They’ve given us a place to stay.” _

_ “But they always force you to work for them even when you aren’t well!” _

_ “When you grow up and learn to share, you’ll understand no matter how painful it is, you will never regret giving.” _

_ ****** _

Karin’s eyes widened when she realised the meaning behind her mother’s word. Finally, after so long, she understood what her mother had meant. She had never been able to see people biting her skin and leaving nasty marks as giving. 

Sakura had given Sasuke a home that he needed, but Karin had done her part too. Like those leaves she saw while she was waiting for Sakura — some of them had fallen to the forest floor instead of flying, but they would still nourish the soil. 

She could still care for Sasuke’s daughter. 

After a long time, Karin finally felt content and happy. Never had she thought that giving up on something would feel so good, until she finally let go of her love for Sasuke. Finally, she felt she was free — with no more chains of regret and jealousy holding her back from embracing a new feeling.

  
  
  
  
  


**Author's Note:**

> The idea behind writing this was to depict the blooming friendship between Karin and Sakura. Hopefully, I could narrate this via my story.
> 
> Thank you for reading and please leave a review.


End file.
